1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to dispensers and more particularly pertains to a random member dispenser for randomly dispensing one of a plurality of discrete random members.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of dispensers is known in the prior art. More specifically, dispensers heretofore devised and utilized for the purpose of generating random numbers are known to consist basically of familiar, expected and obvious structural configurations, notwithstanding the myriad of designs encompassed by the crowded prior art which have been developed for the fulfillment of countless objectives and requirements.
For example, a candy dispenser is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,978,030 which includes a candy container configured as a fowl or the like with the candy being shaped as an egg. Squeezing or compressing the container causes an egg to be ejected from an orifice on the bottom of a container, while simultaneously generating air pressure to activate a reed type sound generator located in the bill of the container.
A random number generator is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,039,101 which may be utilized for selecting a specific quantity of random numbers from a preselected quantity of numbers for a select game of chance. This device includes a container which is substantially filled with a plurality of spheres and a liquid. These spheres are buoyant relative to the liquid, such that a selected quantity of these spheres may float into a tube, whereby they may be selected therefrom as random numbers.
Another patent of interest is U.S. Pat. No. 4,974,847 which describes a lottery pick machine designed for mixing number balls within a closed container. The container has an entry port for the insertion of the balls and an exit port for the exit of the balls after they have been mixed and randomly selected. The machine may be used for any game or function that requires mixing of numbers, but the main purpose of the machine is for the random selection of numbers for the various lottery games that are now popular around the country.
Other known prior art dispensers utilized for random number selection are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,877,246, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,466,045.
While these devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives and requirements, the aforementioned patents do not disclose a random member dispenser for randomly dispensing one of a plurality of discrete random members which includes a housing having a cavity therewithin and being supported by a pair of supporting actuators which cooperate to open an aperture in the cavity when the housing is downwardly pushed by a user such that a random member is thereby allowed to escape from the housing for generating random numbers such as utilized in bingo, lotteries, and other games. Furthermore, none of the known prior art dispensers teach or suggest a random member dispenser of the aforementioned structure in which the housing is shaped as an animal, such as a chicken, turkey, or the like.
In these respects, the random member dispenser according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of randomly dispensing one of a plurality of discrete random members.